![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-300x200.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")
Generation Companies (GENCOs) and Distribution Companies (DISCos) owe Nigerian banks N836.09bn as crisis continue to rock the power sector following its privatisation in 2014.
The debt profile of the power companies was revealed by the Central Bank of Nigeria in June 2022
While power generation firms and independent power producers owed banks N562.19bn, power transmission and distribution firms were indebted to the tune of N273.89bn.
Nigeria’s distribution and generation companies were privatised in November 2013 through the Bureau of Public Enterprises, generating about $3.2bn for the federal government. The GENCOs and DISCOs were sold for $1.5bn and $1.7bn.
The Nigerian government privatised the six successor power generation companies and 11 distribution firms that were unbundled from the defunct Power Holding Company of Nigeria.
The acquisitions by the core investors were financed mostly by loans provided by local banks but mismanagement and poor accountability has plunged both the GENCOs and DISCOs into huge debt.
From power generation to transmission to distribution, there have been diverse concerns, as well as in other arms of the business such as in the regulation of the industry.
These concerns have made stakeholders express doubts over the viability of the privatisation of the distribution and generation arms of the industry.
They stated that the recent takeover or re-acquisition of some power distribution companies by a Deposit Money Bank, the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria and another investor, for instance, showed that all was not well with the Discos.
Chris Akamnonu, who served as managing director in three Discos in the South-East and South-West for about 13 years, “The situation is more complex than the ordinary person sees. The entire experiment may not be yielding the desired results; that is the frank truth,” he told Punch Newspaper.
Chronicle NG reported that United Bank for Africa (UBA) eight months ago took over Abuja Eletricity Distribution Comapny (AEDC) from KANN Consortium after it failed to service the debt owed the financial institution.
Similarly, the Nigerian government, through BPE took over Ibadan DISCO. BPE obtained approval from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission to appoint an interim managing director for the distressed power firm.
In July 2022, it was reported that the federal government alongside Fidelity Bank and AMCON had taken over the affairs of five electricity distribution companies, also known as DISCOs, over debts owed to Fidelity Bank.
The affected companies were Kano Electricity Distribution Company, Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company, Benin Electricity Distribution Company, Kaduna Electric, and Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company.
The companies had failed to repay loans obtained to pay for assets acquired in the 2013 privatisation exercise.
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")
